Surface coatings for fluxless soldering of copper

Abstract

The solder interconnection of components to printed circuit boards normally utilises a flux to enable the efficient removal of oxide layers from the metals to be joined. While this produces a strong metallurgical bond, the flux residue left behind after the soldering process can be detrimental to the long‐term performance of the product. Therefore, after assembly, a cleaning process is often employed to remove the residue, however, this incurs extra financial and environmental costs. In this work, organic coatings have been used to preserve copper surfaces in an oxide free state, enabling fluxless soldering to take place. These coatings, if stored appropriately, were found to be effective in preventing the oxidation of copper for several weeks, however, they are readily displaced by the soldering process allowing the active copper surface to be wetted. Wetting balance testing and surface analysis have been used to assess the preservation of copper coupons following storage in air.

Citation

Liu, C. and Hutt, D.A. (2003), "Surface coatings for fluxless soldering of copper", Circuit World, Vol. 29 No. 1, pp. 19-23. https://doi.org/10.1108/03056120310444151